MIDDLING

Pronunciation (US):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does middling mean? 

• MIDDLING (noun)
  The noun MIDDLING has 1 sense:

1. any commodity of intermediate quality or size (especially when coarse particles of ground wheat are mixed with bran)

  Familiarity information: MIDDLING used as a noun is very rare.

• MIDDLING (adjective)
  The adjective MIDDLING has 1 sense:

1. lacking exceptional quality or ability

  Familiarity information: MIDDLING used as an adjective is very rare.

• MIDDLING (adverb)
  The adverb MIDDLING has 1 sense:

1. to certain extent or degree

  Familiarity information: MIDDLING used as an adverb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MIDDLING (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Any commodity of intermediate quality or size (especially when coarse particles of ground wheat are mixed with bran)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("middling" is a kind of...):

commodity; good; trade good (articles of commerce)

• MIDDLING (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Lacking exceptional quality or ability

Synonyms:

average; fair; mediocre; middling

Context example:

the performance was middling at best

Similar:

ordinary (not exceptional in any way especially in quality or ability or size or degree)

• MIDDLING (adverb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

To certain extent or degree

Synonyms:

fairly; jolly; middling; moderately; passably; pretty; reasonably; somewhat

Context example:

he is fairly clever with computers

 Context examples 

Middling, my dear; I cannot compliment you.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

You must know it to be so; and the general made such a point of your providing nothing extraordinary: besides, if he had not said half so much as he did, he has always such an excellent dinner at home, that sitting down to a middling one for one day could not signify.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

He was a stout young man of middling height, who, with a plain face and ungraceful form, seemed fearful of being too handsome unless he wore the dress of a groom, and too much like a gentleman unless he were easy where he ought to be civil, and impudent where he might be allowed to be easy.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)